Leubald was an attempt by the youthfulRichard Wagner to write a tragic drama in theShakespearean genre.^[1] It occupied him during the years 1827-28 while he was at school, first inDresden and later inLeipzig. The play combines elements ofHamlet,King Lear,Macbeth andRichard III, with influences fromGoethe andHeinrich von Kleist.^[2] The criticTheodor Adorno has noted:

Leubald [and Wagner's other early writings] are all of a piece with those plays of which high-school pupils are wont to write in their exercise books the title, theDramatis Personae, and the words 'Act I'.^[3]

It is unclear whether, or in what manner, Wagner intended to set this text to music, but the desire to do so may have been the factor which led him to begin the study of composition.^[4] No music forLeubald has survived, but the text of the play exists.^[5] It has been suggested that the character of Adriano in Wagner's later operaRienzi is recognisably based on that of Leubald in the earlier drama.^[6]

• List of compositions by Richard Wagner

• Adorno, Theodor (2009), tr. Rodney Livingstone,In Search of Wagner, Verso, LondonISBN 978-1-84467-344-5
• Gutman, Robert W. (1971):Richard Wagner: The Man, His Mind and His Music, Penguin Books, LondonISBN 0-14-021168-3
• Millington, Barry (2001):(Wilhelm) Richard Wagner in Grove Music Online, ed. Laura Macy. Retrieved on 20 March 2009 (subscription required)

• Libretti by Richard Wagner

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